Sometimes When It Rains
by feisty.red.head
Summary: Bella, married to Jacob tells her little Marie Esme a story about Stella, a girl who falls in love with Edward, but this time, it has a happy ending. ExB


**A/N: **I was inspired but the song "Sometimes When it Rains" from the movie "The Secret Garden." It has a sweet, sad, and fairy tale like quality to it. Hope you enjoy.

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**Sometimes When It Rains**

It had been 18 years. 18 years since they had left. 18 years since my heart had beaten without a throb of pain following.

Sure, I had settled down, married Jake and had a beautiful baby girl—Marie Esme Black—she was the light of my life. Jacob was still my sun, and I loved him more then my own life. He was beautiful, and the life that we had created was the picture of perfection. From the outside, we looked happy, blissful even.

And for the most part, we were. Anytime his face lit up when he saw me, or any time I heard little Marie Esme giggle I felt it. It was hard not to smile, and it was even harder to pretend that at one time, I thought I would never have this.

I fell in love with my Paris.

But sometimes when it rained—which it did almost constantly—I thought about him.

My beautiful angel.

_Edward._

My hands would clench into fists and I would fight back the tears. Jake knew, but he was kind enough never to say anything. He was more then I deserved, and I felt waves of guilt wash over me every time his name would drift through my brain. But that was nothing compared to the pain in my heart.

This time was no exception. I was standing in front of our kitchen sink, washing Marie's cup, staring vacantly out of the window, watching the steaks of rain slither down its old panes.

I heard the soft padding of bare feet on the floor, tiny ones stumbling to make their way towards me. I dragged myself away from my thoughts to look down at the warm, soft brown eyes that she had inherited from me. They were wide with innocence, but still foggy from her nap. Her russet skin and black hair were the exact replica of her father's.

"Momma." She said, reaching out to me, a tiny blanket in her hand.

"Yes?" I asked with a smile, lifting her up.

"Tell me a story." She said, her face lighting up as I took her into my arms. She squealed and giggled slightly.

"Alright. What would you like to hear?...Sleeping Beauty?" I asked, smiling at the resemblance of the beauty in my hands.

She shook her head vigorously, her tiny brow furrowed. "No. 'Bout a Princess like you." She said stubbornly, her bottom lip jutted out in an adorable pout.

I sighed, not knowing any princesses that failed to marry their Prince Charming.

"Ok. Once upon a time, there was a princess named..." Er, crap. I was no good with spontaneous stories; it had always been more of Jake's forte. "Stella." I said, fighting the urge to roll my eyes at my lack of creativity.

Marie giggled, and clapped her hands, obviously pleased. "Was Stella pretty?" She asked, squirming in my lap as I sat at the kitchen table.

"Well...yes. She was very pretty."

Marie nodded.

I wasn't sure how I was going to get myself out of this one. I looked outside, at the rain, flowing heavily, dousing everything in sight, and inspiration struck.

Marie wiggled impatiently.

"Stella lived in a magical kingdom, where it always rained. The sun hardly ever shined."

"Like Forks?" She asked, obviously surprised.

"Just like Forks." Marie was silent, so I continued. "Stella lived a quiet, ordinary life. Everyday she went to school, made dinner, and did her homework. She was fairly happy, but she always felt like something was missing."

"What was missing Mommy?"

"I was getting to that. Hold your horses." I said with a small smile at her impatience. She pretended to hold invisible horse reins in her tiny hands. I laughed.

"She was at school one day, just like normal when she laid her eyes on the most beautiful man she had ever met. He had wonderful bronze hair and a crooked smile that would sweep any woman off her feet."

"He sounds pretty!" She chirped.

"He is." I agreed, my smile losing some of the mirth it held. "But he was more then that. He was kind, and sweet, and loved his family."

"What was his name?" She asked, her head tilted to the side with interest.

"Edward" I mumbled slightly, looking at her small, chubby hands. She was silent for a moment, trying to decipher my mood. I faked a smile and pressed on.

"The two, Stella and Edward soon fell in love. They were always together, and never in history had two people been happier with each other. They were crazy about each other, and no one ever saw one without the other. They were like puzzle pieces, they were a perfect fit. Made for each other." I smiled for real this time.

"Stella loved his family too. They took her in as one of their own. For the first time in her life, she had brothers and sisters. Edward's parents also became like her own, even though she loved hers very much.

Edward even wrote Stella her own lullaby, because sometimes she...couldn't sleep." My throat was thick, I swallowed convulsively.

"One day, Edward's family invited her to a baseball game."

Marie giggled; all signs of sleepiness in her face were gone. She was completely immersed in my story. I frowned slightly, wondering if this was going to be too scary for her.

"They went to a game?" She asked, fiddling with a piece of my hair.

"No, silly, they were _playing_ a game."

Her little lips formed an 'O' of understanding.

"Well, they were in the middle of playing—Edward's team was winning of course—when all of a sudden, Edward's sister Alice...um, _saw_...someone in the trees."

Marie was still and completely silent. Her fist was in her mouth, I removed it fearing she would get it stuck.

"A moment later, Stella saw him too. Before she could blink, Edward was at her side, protecting her from danger. At first, Stella was confused why everyone was protecting her from the man, but as she looked at him, and he looked at her, she realized that he—his name was James--wanted to take her away from her new family and Edward."

Marie gasped. "He's a bad man, Mommy!"

"He was." I admitted, slipping into past tense, and hoping that she didn't notice. "Anyway, Edward took her very far away from him, in order to keep her safe because he loved her so much. But it didn't work, he found them, and tricked poor Stella into meeting him somewhere."

Stella gasped again, and whimpered. I kissed her forehead reassuringly.

"James tried to hurt Bel—Stella" My eyes darted to hers, looking for some sort of comprehension. None was found. "He was mean, and nasty and said terrible things to her. But Stella knew that Edward and his family would come. They would save her."

My jaw clenched, why had I agreed to this? This story was not the easiest to tell.

"Just as Stella was about to give up hope, Edward arrived, and the two fought. Stella was afraid that Edward was going to get hurt, even though he was strong, and very fast."

Marie's eyes were filled to the brim with tears, I kissed them away.

"By the time the rest of Edward's family arrived, James was sorry for what he had done. And together, the entire family taught him a lesson he would never forget."

Marie gave a small, watery smile. "E-E-Edward s-saved Stel-la?" She asked, her lower lip quivering. I nodded.

"They all did."

She nodded.

"Edward and Stella were happily together, and the mean, wretched, nasty James was never heard from again."

"And they lived happily ever after?" She asked, her eyes wide, and full of hope. I smiled sadly, wishing this were the truth. "Did the get married and have babies?" She asked, her chubby little hands rubbed her eyes sleepily.

"Yes, baby. They got married, and had babies, and lived together happily ever after." I said, looking at the table. "Forever." I added in a whisper. I held Marie close to me, so that she wouldn't see that my eyes were filled with tears.

"Does that story make you sad, Mommy?"

I pulled away, looking into her eyes, which were surprisingly wise for someone her age. My gaze dropped to the ground, unsure of what to say.

"I-"

"Bells, honey? Marie? Where are my two favorite girls?" Jacob's husky voice called from the front.

"Daddy!" Marie squeaked, clambering out of my lap and thudding towards the front door.

I caught her at the last moment and whispered "Daddy doesn't like that story, it makes him sad, so don't say anything, ok?"

Her lower lip pouted before she nodded happily, and ran into his waiting arms.

I watched as Jacob picked her up and spun her in his arms, while she screamed with joy. I leaned against the doorframe, and couldn't help but smile. It was a beautiful sight, and I desperately wished that I could give him my whole heart. But I knew that was impossible, because I loved another with such a fierce intensity that my heart ached when I thought about him.

I couldn't deny that I was loved, however. And sometimes, when Jacob looked at me a certain way, or Marie giggled and said "look, Mommy!" I completely forgot about the heart ache that chased me constantly, and lived in the moment.

But sometimes, when it rained, I imagined that my fairy tale had ended differently.


End file.
